Strong public support for better food labelling to combat obesity cancer risk

There is strong public support for policies to improve food labelling, with 86% of people in a survey supporting introducing a colour-coded food labelling system, according to research in the latest issue of Public Health Research & Practice (PHRP).

The study aimed to identify whether there is a relationship between support for food policy initiatives and awareness of the link between obesity-related lifestyle risk factors and cancer.

Recent estimates in Australia show that more than 3900 cancer cases (3.4% of all cancers) diagnosed in 2010 could be attributed to overweight or obesity, 7089 (6.1%) to inadequate diet and 1814 (1.6%) to inadequate physical activity. The study found support for food policy initiatives was higher among those who were aware of the link between cancer and obesity-related lifestyle factors.

The December issue of PHRP includes a range of articles focussing on topical issues in public health including obesity, vaccination, cancer screening, Indigenous smoking, and social media.